Measurement-based care is a helpful adjunct to clinical assessment in improving outcomes in depression in adults and adolescents. Measurement-based care principles are incorporated in current regulatory requirements for use of standardized instruments in efforts to improve care and prevent suicide. Challenges for child and adolescent psychiatrists and other clinicians in implementing measurement-based care include concerns about time and expense involved in administration and interpretation of results from rating scales and other instruments. Implementation can be facilitated by selection of instruments that are brief, easy to administer and score, compatible with electronic health record systems, and available in the public domain.